D&D 5E Using COMMAND to break a caster's concentration?

[Blue]

RAW this to me is way more ridiculous then command breaking concentration. I never agreed with this rule and really dont use it. I mean casting a second spell imo should cancel the first.

I hope you rebalance the casters for the massive, massive nerf you are applying to them. Please, house rule to meet your versimlitude and bring happiness to your table, but realize that you are tremendously nerfing casters by not allow other casting while maintaining concentration.

 

[J.Quondam]

Sleeping puts a number of conditions on the target, worse than the Prone condition that is mentioned. I don't think it's a reasonable assumption that a multi-purpose spell can do everything a single-purpose spell of the same level can do, especially when the results are greater than any other result listed for the multi-purpose spell.

Yeah, this.

After some thinking on this, I'm taking back my initial instinct to allow command to break the Concentration with a word of "sleep" (or most anything else, for that matter.) The reason is that the broad tactical "purpose" of command is to deprive the target of their actions. Allowing much more than that makes it too powerful for a 1st level.

With that said, I still think "sleep" is a valid possibility for command, but the effect is something along the lines of the "grovel" option: the target gets drowsy, maybe lies down, and starts trying to snooze. But that's all.

If a caster wants to break a target's concentration, just inflict some damage or incapacitate it "for real," eg. with sleep. Or a maul.

 

[R_J_K75]

I hope you rebalance the casters for the massive, massive nerf you are applying to them. Please, house rule to meet your versimlitude and bring happiness to your table, but realize that you are tremendously nerfing casters by not allow other casting while maintaining concentration.

In the 3 years I've been playing with this group it hasn't been a problem.

 

[Stalker0]

I think part of the issue is caused by the fact that "spell concentration" as a D&D construct doesn't necessarily require concentration the way we see it and use it on a daily basis. What would break or disrupt my concentration in my real life wouldn't necessarily break D&D's spell concentration.

It's more like holding something in your hands. You can do all sort of things while holding something in your hands (including dedicate your attention to other things), but you can't hold something else.

This is a really good analogy.

 

[Stalker0]

Considering another good use of command is forcing the target to move on their turn, which can provoke OAs (and therefore concentration checks), I think using command to force a caster to stop concentrating (but do nothing else them) is a reasonable interpretation of the spell.

 

[Blue]

In the 3 years I've been playing with this group it hasn't been a problem.

You are vastly changing the action economy. It IS a problem, regardless if you realize it or not. Perhaps you/your table have nothing to compare it to. Or are buffing casters other ways like only running a few encounters a day.

Not being able to realize a problem does not mean there is no problem. This is a huge change to what a caster can do, either in removing concentration spells, or by removing casting actions while keeping them up. There definitively is a change in the relative power of the classes if casters can not cast while concentrating.

 

[R_J_K75]

You are vastly changing the action economy. It IS a problem, regardless if you realize it or not. Perhaps you/your table have nothing to compare it to. Or are buffing casters other ways like only running a few encounters a day.

Not being able to realize a problem does not mean there is no problem. This is a huge change to what a caster can do, either in removing concentration spells, or by removing casting actions while keeping them up. There definitively is a change in the relative power of the classes if casters can not cast while concentrating.

We dont notice nor do we care so there is no problem regardless of you telling me there is. What we're are doing works for us. Only action economy I care about..."Spellcaster get me another beer".

 

[Krachek]

Usually it’s the players job to stretch rules and find nasty solution,
DM should stay basic and by the book.

 

[el-remmen]

I’d allow a concentration check against the enemy casters DC, but otherwise yeah I agree with this.

I'd just make it DC 10, since that is the base for Concentration checks unless it is against a ton of damage, right?

 

[Oofta]

Id have to take a closer look at the concentration rule and spells RAW to see casting times and durations, etc. I could see an instantaneous magic missile but not a spell that requires concentration. I wouldnt allow a caster to have 2 spells that require concentration in effect at the same time, though ICR what the rules are specifically regarding such.

You can only have 1 concentration spell at a time. Some spells like bless last for a minute, others like hunter's mark can last up to an hour, some can last for a day like find the path.

I agree that it's kind of a goofy thing, but concentration can't be that hard to maintain if you can keep it up for an entire day. You couldn't sleep during that time of course, but you're going to be doing a bunch of stuff.

At the DM's discretion you can ask for a DC 10 con check under certain circumstances (i.e. waves crashing over a ship) so it's going to be up to the DM even if they run it straight by the rules.